Question

While still in its early stages, welfare reform has already been judged a great success in many states-at least in getting people off welfare. It’s estimated that more than 2 million people have left the rolls since 1994.

In the past four years, welfare rolls in Athens County have been cut in half. But 15 percents of the people who left in the past two years took jobs that paid less than $6 an hour. The resuit: The Athens County poverty rate still remains at more than 30 percent-twice the national average.

 For advocates (代言人) for the poor, that’s an indication that much more needs to be done.

“More people are getting jobs, but it’s not making their lives any better,” says Kathy Lairn,a policy analyst at the Center on Budget and policy Priorities in Washington.

A center analysis of US Census data nationwide found that between 1995 and 1996, a greater percentage of single, female-headed households were earning money on their own, but that average income for these households actually went down.

But for many, the fact that poor people are able to support themselves almost as well without government aid as they did with it is in itself a huge victory.  

“Welfare was a poison. It was a toxin(毒素) that was poisoning the family,” says Robert Rector, a welfare?reform policy analyst. “The reform is changing the moral climate in low?income communities. It’s beginning to rebuild the work ethic(道德觀), which is much more important.”

Mr. Rector and others argued that once “the habit of dependency is cracked, ”then the country can make other policy changes aimed at improving living standards.

13.From the passage, it can be seen that the auther .      

A.believes the reform has reduced the government’s burden

B.insists that welfare reform is doing little good for the poor

C.is overenthusiastic about the success of welfare reform

D.considers welfare reform to be fundamentally successful

14.Why aren’t people enjoying better lives when they have jobs?

A.Because many families are divorced.        B.Because government aid is now rare.

C.Because their wages are low.               D.Because the cost of living is rising.

15.What is worth noting from the example of Athens County is that .      

A.greater efforts should be made to improve people’s living standards

B.15 percent of the people there have been employed for two years

C.50 percent of the population no longer relies on welfare

D.the living standards of most people are going down

16.From the passage we know that welfare reform aims at_______ .

A.saving welfare funds                       B.rebuilding the work ethics(觀念)

C.providing more jobs                        D.cutting government expenses

Answer 1

13-16  DCAB

解析:

13. 縱觀全文，作者十分客觀地分析了福利制度改革的利與弊。改革成功地減少了靠福利救濟生活的人數(shù)，盡管它并沒能提高窮人的生活水平，但改變了低收入者的思想觀念，使人們不再心安理得地接受救濟。這本身就是一勝利。可見作者仍然認(rèn)為福利制度改革利大于弊。

14. 文章第二段第二句指出，第二年不再接受救濟的人中，有15％找到了工作．但報酬每小時不到6美元�？梢娛杖脒^低使他們生活貧困。

15. 作者列舉Athens County這個實例，是為了說明福利制度改革雖然使多數(shù)人重新開始工作，但由于收入低，人們的貧困狀況仍然沒有改變。文章第三段暗示了作者舉例的意圖：Athens County提供的事實表明,人們?yōu)楦纳频褪杖胝哓毨�生活所做出的努力還遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)不夠�？梢�，作者在呼吁政府作出更多的努力來改善人們的生活。

16. 文章第七段末句指出，改革正在重塑人們的工作觀，這是最重要的�？梢姡�福利制度改革旨在改變?nèi)藗兊乃枷胗^念